From movie star to wartime nurse to mom to UNICEF ambassador, Audrey Hepburn lived a storied life, and author 
Michele Botton and illustrator Dorilys Giacchetto clearly take great joy in exploring the different eras of this icon in the appropriately named comic, Audrey Hepburn. Starting with the actress’ later years, the creators jump back to when Hepburn was 20 (after she had given up aspirations of becoming a professional ballerina) and move mostly chronologically through her life, hitting on the major film roles and relationships that would shape her career, occasionally stepping back to examine her childhood during World War II.
The back cover features a quote from Hepburn’s son, Luca, that seems to inform every aspect of the comic: “Everyone has their own Audrey.” Indeed, the book’s greatest strength seems to be how the creators depict the multifaceted identity of such a major figure of popular culture. The character is in a constant rotation of hairstyles and attire, suggesting her desire to continually push and reinvent herself. This is reinforced by the chapter title pages, which depict full body images of Hepburn in different poses and outfits, as if she is changing costumes or personas as the story progresses. Botton and Giacchetto see Hepburn as a woman of many dimensions, and take every opportunity to express this visually.
Giacchetto revels in big gestures and facial expressions, bringing a strong sense of cartooning to Audrey Hepburn that is both playful and exceedingly legible. A biography about an actress doesn’t offer over-the-top action, but the artist nonetheless finds subtle ways to infuse movement into the storytelling by relying on dynamic poses that give an energy to scenes that would otherwise feel rather static. Giacchetto’s characters have large eyes, emotive hands and faces, and evoke that classic cartooning style that will be immediately recognizable to even the most casual of Disney fans.
The book is a breezy read, which is usually good, but it also seems to gloss over some of the more intriguing and perhaps less discussed years of Hepburn’s life, notably her time volunteering as a nurse in a field hospital during World War II, as well as her later career as an ambassador for UNICEF. I suspect dwelling too much on these moments, however, would have weighed down an otherwise intentionally upbeat book, so I can’t say their omission is a surprise.
Audrey Hepburn falls into some of the expected pitfalls of biographies, in that sometimes it feels more like a list of historical occurrences rather than a carefully crafted story, but if you enjoy mostly straightforward, step-by-step accounts (or biographies, of course), this comic will feel extremely familiar. If you’re looking for a deeply critical analysis of the complex cultural icon that is Audrey Hepburn, you will not find it in this comic, but what Botton and Giacchetto have done is create a book that has fun in highlighting the successes of an exceptional woman who probably doesn’t get the credit she deserves as an artist and performer.
Audrey Hepburn Vol.
By Michele Botton
Art by Dorilys Giacchetto
NBM Publishing, 2024
ISBN: 9781681123462
NFNT Age Recommendation: Adult (18+), Older Teen (16-18), Teen (13-16)
Creator Representation: Italian,
Character Representation: British,
